Khem Sokha, Cambodia’s enemy, was sentenced to 27 years in prison for treason.

Khem Sokha, arrested in September 2017, is accused of wanting to overthrow the Cambodian government of Hun Sen, who has been in power for decades. Five years later, the verdict is in. The opposition leader was sentenced to 27 years in prison on Friday, March 3. “for partnering with foreigners in Cambodia and elsewhere”Judge Khoi Chao told the Phnom Penh court.

After the verdict, 69-year-old Khem Sokha was immediately taken from the courtroom to his home, where he will be placed under house arrest and barred from meeting anyone except his family members. One of his lawyers, Ang Udom, told reporters that he has one month to appeal against the conviction and prison sentence.

Khem Sokha, an opposition figure and co-founder of the now-defunct Cambodia National Salvation Party (PSNC), has always contested the allegations. The court also stripped him of his right to vote and barred him from running for political office, barring him from running in the July 23 national election.

“I cannot accept this verdict”Kem Sokha supporter Chea Samuon told Agence France-Presse (AFP) outside the courtroom. “It’s very unfair to him and the people. He’s not guilty, it’s political pressure.”.

A drag test

The United States quickly responded through the voice of its ambassador to Cambodia, who was present at the court. The trial and conviction of Kem Soka a “Fabric Conspiracy” and produces a “Mistrial Justice”, W. Patrick Murphy told reporters. That’s what US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken told himself when he met with Kem Soka in Phnom Penh in August. “disappointment” By the length of the legal proceedings “politically motivated”. Kem Soka’s trial has been dragged out until it resumes in January 2022 after the trials were postponed for almost two years due to coronavirus restrictions.

Hun Sen – in power since 1985 – Asia’s longest-serving leader – has rolled back democratic freedoms, and Choka’s conviction is part of the regime’s crackdown on Israel. Some of them had to leave the kingdom against dissenting voices. They have arrested and are investigating. Last year, dozens of opponents linked to the PSNC were jailed during two massive trials condemned by the international community.

The PSNC made a breakthrough in the 2013 elections, winning 55 out of 123 seats, only to be dissolved four years later by the country’s Supreme Court. In subsequent ballots, in 2018, Hun Sen’s party won all seats in parliament, with the results hotly contested.

“Dazzling Without Freedom”

With no apparent opposition, the Cambodian leader, a former Khmer Rouge fighter who defected from the movement and rose through the ranks when Vietnam invaded Cambodia, turns 70 on another landslide victory in July legislative elections. . The arbitrary closure of one of the kingdom’s last independent media outlets, Voice of DemocracyIn mid-February, concerns about holding free and fair elections resurfaced.

Ex-PSNC leader and exiled opposition figure Sam Rainsy, who has lived in France since 2015, says many of the convictions are politically motivated, based on Kem Shkova’s investigation. “Fabric Accusations”.

“The authorities won” in Cambodia, Bill Robertson of the NGO Human Rights Watch told AFP. “Cambodia democracy is hitting rock bottom. »

“Sending Khem Sokha to jail is not only to destroy his political party, but to crush any hope of holding genuine general elections in July. »

Kem Sohka explains the investigation “The Scary Problem of State Control over the Judiciary in the Country”said Zach Sobbeep, executive director of the Cambodian Center for Human Rights.

Using the courts to hunt down enemies “Knows No Boundaries”According to Amnesty International. The Cambodian judiciary has once again demonstrated its lack of independence.For his part, Amnesty International’s deputy regional director Ming Yu Hah lamented.